The present invention relates to a mobile communication or telephony system that enables users to deposit and read messages relating, among other things, to geographic locations.
It is already known that mobile phones may make use of the Internet and its associated services through suitable modems. So-called WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) terminals recently put on the marketplace enable terminals of limited physical size, memory and processing power, to retrieve information accessible on the Internet in a convenient manner and also to deliver information.
The prompting of messages associated with a given location to mobile terminals passing near such locations is known in the art.
The messages are typically stored on a server, and the mobile terminal, which may contain a location determining system, such as a GPS (Global Positioning System) unit, issues signals relating to the actual location of the terminal in question, whereupon location related messages are sent to the terminal. The location determination of mobile terminals may also be performed on the basis of signals being transmitted between base-stations and mobile terminals.
The company, CitiKey(trademark) has presented such an apparatus; a so-called mobile city guide, which may be coupled to the World Wide Web, through which information associated with the actual location of the city guide may be retrieved and exchanged.
On the CitiKey(trademark) apparatus, the user has the possibility to see his own position on a map and he may in an interactive manner for instance search for a place to dine, book tickets to a concert, acquire the local weather forecast or find his way through the metro system.
Prior art document U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,244 shows a handheld personal digital assistant (PDA) for collecting and showing information. The device, which constitutes a miniaturised personal computer combined with a GPS unit, comprises a LCD screen whereon information can be shown and on which entries, in the form of handwritings, may be made.
The personal digital assistant according to U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,244 is adapted to collect and display data related to the actual position of the device. This information may be exchanged with the users own desktop computer through wired coupling of the personal assistant and the desktop computer. Information may moreover be exchanged with other users by coupling the desktop computer to a central server through a public network.
Prior art document EP-A-0 853 287 shows a PDA (personal digital assistant), comprising a miniaturised personal computer, a GSM interface and a GPS unit.
The above personal digital assistant is adapted to offer Internet access to the user. A certain user profile may be set up on the PDA whereby the location or travel route and accompanying information may automatically be provided as part of an Internet search session. In this way, context related messages can easily be searched and provided by specific Internet servers.
A similar system is known from WO98/59506 offering SMS (Short Message Services) messages depending on the actual location of a mobile unit as determined by a GPS unit.
The invention seeks to offer new mobile services to users enabling people to convey messages and possibly create new, useful, and perhaps unexpected contacts between people.
According to a first aspect of the invention, as claimed in claim 1, there is provided a system for the creation of graffiti or other data in a virtual space relating to the physical world.
According to a second aspect of the invention, a message is associated with the particular location on which it was created.
According to a third aspect of the invention, the message created is following the position of a particular mobile terminal, such that a dynamic message can be created.
In the case where the message is allocated to the users own mobile terminal, such dynamic messages may for instance be used in analogy to badges worn on the clothes, i.e. messages created or associated with the user.
Further advantages will appear from the following detailed description of the invention.